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=Just seeing if I can figure this thing out...= toc

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=Social Media Smackdown Part !:=

Use Twitter during an assessment…
repost from previous assignment

Performance assessment: Course on Sanhedrin Chapter 8 Unit on topic of Martyrdom Big Idea – Jewish Concepts Evolve

Work in groups of 5 to complete a television broadcast special on martyrdom.

Each group member will be given a character and will have to use the texts we studied together in class as well as research extra information to decide how that character will respond on

the program (these texts must be cited).

The end project will be a poster board and a video taped 5-10 minute broadcast

The Poster board will consist of: · A written portion from each character (individually) – a summary of each character’s views (see characters below) · A timeline of views of Martyrdom through the different time periods we have studied · A list of questions from the television broadcast · A personal view of alternatives to martyrdom (to be completed as a group) The video will include: · Interviews of the characters from the list of questions · A statement that allows the viewer to understand what he/she is watching - is it a historical program/religious/newscast. · Complete group participation in video

Please choose characters from this list: · Interviewer: This character will contribute a list of questions showing their confidence with the text we have learned in class as well as any other research done by the other group members. This character will use the questions during the broadcast and will include the questions on the poster board. · Martyr: The character will be a present day martyr (encompassing the 20th and 21st centuries – remember that we studied both very current events and events surrounding the Holocaust – both are applicable). This character will contribute research describing why s/he decided to be a martyr using the texts we learned in class as well as other research. · Rabbi: This character can either be a time traveling Rabbi from the time of the Gemorah or a present day Rabbi. This character will contribute a discussion of Jewish halacha on the topic of martyrdom from the Gemorah and any other research. · Historian: This character is an expert on the history of martyrdom. This character needs to use all the texts that we went through in class and present the evolution of martyrdom throughout history including today. This character’s contribution to the poster board will include a timeline. · Wo/man on the street: This is an average person today. The character will contribute a look at current events from the perspective of the group. Please work together on this project.

Each student will be graded individually.

Twitter components:
1) Students will tweet their individual research sources linking their sources to a class page for research (@)… By doing this, not only will they be able to share their research but also the teacher will be able to keep track of the items being research and help and comment on whether the sources are appropriate for the assignment. 2) For the student in each group who is the “wo/man on the street”: this student can use Twitter as ONE of his/her sources – seeing what other people around the world are saying about martyrdom and incorporating their views into the movie presentation. Twitter, however, may not be that students only source.

= Social Media Smackdown Part 2: Wordle =

What is it?
Wordle is a fun online tool that allows one to make wonderful designs out of words. One takes an essay, song, piece of text, etc... and puts it into the wordle system and comes out with a piece of artwork that emphasizes the words that are repeated most often.

How to integrate it into your curriculum?
It is the emphasis of repeated words that is most important when thinking of using this tool in the text based, Jewish Day School, classroom. One important method of studying biblical text is to find //Milim Manchot//. //Milim Manchot// are words that are repeated multiple times in a short area of text. Usually, these words have a special meaning or develop a theme to the text being studied. One way to make learning a dynamic process is to use wordle as a tool to help find the //Milim Manchot.// Students will read through the text once and then place the text in the wordle system. They will then look up the meaning to the words that appear to be emphasized. They will then read through the text again, making sure to keep in mind the words they looked up. Finally, students will use the words from wordle and their knowledge of the text to point out the main theme that occurs in the text and how the //Milim Manchot// help them discover that theme.

Tips and Techniques.
There are a few difficulties with using Wordle in Hebrew. Unlike in English, where one is able to take out "filler" words that appear often in passages (the, of, a...), in Hebrew one may find that the words most emphasized are those that give very little to the theme of the passage. The greatest of these is "את". Therefore, it is important to either teach your students to be aware of this or to go through the text carefully to pull out a text with a minimum amount of these filler words.

One thing that I have yet to figure out is how to save the wordle to an outside source. This is something that I am most interested in and would love feedback on.

=OP-Ed:=